Question:hard

If the ionic mobility of \(\mathrm{Ag^+}\) ion in a very dilute aqueous solution of \(\mathrm{AgNO_3}\) at \(298\ \mathrm{K}\) is \(y\times10^{-8}\ \mathrm{m^2\,V^{-1}\,s^{-1}}\), then the value of \(y\) is (rounded off to two decimal places).

(Given: viscosity of water at \(298\ \mathrm{K} = 8.94\times10^{-4}\ \mathrm{kg\,m^{-1}\,s^{-1}}\); \(k = 1.38\times10^{-23}\ \mathrm{J\,K^{-1}}\); \(F = 96500\ \mathrm{C\,mol^{-1}}\); \(R = 8.314\ \mathrm{J\,mol^{-1}\,K^{-1}}\); Stokes radius of \(\mathrm{Ag^+} = 0.15\ \mathrm{nm}\))

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Combine Stokes' law for the diffusion coefficient with the Nernst-Einstein relation between mobility and diffusion coefficient: \(u=zFk/(6\pi\eta r R)\), since \(k/R=1/N_A\).
Updated On: Jul 20, 2026
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Correct Answer: 6.35

Solution and Explanation

A more direct way to see this is to skip the Nernst-Einstein detour and use Stokes' law for the ion's terminal drift velocity under an electric field directly.

Under a field $E$, an ion of charge $ze$ feels an electric force $zeE$. In steady drift this force is balanced by the viscous drag from Stokes' law, $6\pi\eta r v$. Setting them equal:

\[ zeE = 6\pi\eta r v \quad\Rightarrow\quad u=\frac{v}{E}=\frac{ze}{6\pi\eta r} \]

The elementary charge is the Faraday constant divided by Avogadro's number, $e=F/N_A$. Since $R=N_Ak$, $N_A=R/k$, so $e=Fk/R$, which folds back into the same $u=zFk/(6\pi\eta rR)$ formula, just built up from the drift-velocity picture instead of the diffusion-coefficient picture.

Put in the numbers for $z=1$, $F=96500\ \mathrm{C\,mol^{-1}}$, $k=1.38\times10^{-23}\ \mathrm{J\,K^{-1}}$, $R=8.314\ \mathrm{J\,mol^{-1}\,K^{-1}}$:

\[ e=\frac{Fk}{R}=\frac{(96500)(1.38\times10^{-23})}{8.314}=1.602\times10^{-19}\ \mathrm{C} \]

which is (as a sanity check) the textbook value of the electron charge, confirming the constants are being combined correctly.

\[ u=\frac{(1)(1.602\times10^{-19})}{6\pi(8.94\times10^{-4})(1.5\times10^{-10})}=\frac{1.602\times10^{-19}}{2.5277\times10^{-12}}=6.34\times10^{-8}\ \mathrm{m^2\,V^{-1}\,s^{-1}} \]

So $y\approx6.34$ to $6.35$, matching the answer from the diffusion-coefficient route, since both are just two ways of writing the same physics.

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